Oando Plc‘s shareholders have berated the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), for the cancellation of the company’s 42nd Annual General Meeting (AGM) barely 24 hours to the meeting.
Why are they angry? The shareholders’ anger stemmed mainly from the fact that the AGM was canceled without consideration for the other parties, most of whom bore the cost of traveling long distances to Lagos.
Nairametrics learned that many minority shareholders who were unaware that the AGM had been canceled, arrived at the venue where the AGM was supposed to hold only to discover that the apex capital market regulator already suspended the event indefinitely.
The shareholders’ stance: Speaking on the suspension, the National Chairman of New Dimension Shareholders Association, Patrick Ajudua, described SEC’s action as “an extreme case of absolute power corrupts absolutely”.
According to Ajudua, SEC was notified of the meeting 21 days ago and it gave the company the approval to proceed, only to turn around and cancel it without minding the cost implication to the company, shareholders, stakeholders and associates.
“As shareholders, we call on our President, Vice President and members of National Assembly to call the management of SEC, who has been operating without a Board in the past four years, to order. They need to do this now to save the only prospering indigenous oil company, its enduring shareholders, the capital market and the nation from the erosion of confidence in the capital market and the economy at large.”
Similarly, Comrade Lawrence Oguntoye, the President of Distinct Shareholders Association, noted that SEC’s action against the Oando Plc AGM is an injustice and infringement on the rights of the shareholders.
“Most shareholders who came from very far states were disgraced and highly disappointed at venue. SEC ought to have considered the minority shareholders if truly it is protecting our interest, but it seems there is a skeleton in SEC’s cupboard apart from this forensic report.”
The Backstory: As Nairametrics earlier reported, SEC had recommended the resignation of Wale Tinubu as Oando Plc‘s Group Group Chief Executive Officer (CEO) over alleged serious infractions; including false disclosures, market abuses, amongst others.
Earlier this week, the capital market regulator indefinitely suspended the company’s AGM, which was scheduled to hold on Tuesday, June 11, 2019.